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Into the Sideways World by Ross Welford

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 21 Jan 2022

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From the author of When We Got Lost In Dreamland, The Kid Who Came From Space, The Dog Who Saved The World, and Time Travelling With A Hamster…

[Cover illustration by Tom Clohosy Cole.]

When twelve-year-olds Willa and Manny hear of a mysterious animal prowling their town, they are determined to prove it is real. Following the creature into a cave one full moon, they are swept into an alternate, ideal, world – one where pollution and conflict have been conquered decades ago and even their own families seem happier.

But when they return, no one believes them. So, with a global war looming in their own world, their quest for proof of the Sideways World becomes ever-more urgent, in a nail-biting race against time.

And Willa and Manny will have to make an impossible decision: because once you find a perfect world, can you ever leave it behind?

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The Horror of Dunwick Farm – The Crooked Oak Mysteries by Dan Smith ill Chris King

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The mystery is growing at Dunwick Farm and it all started with a plane crash … Crooked Oak’s mystery-solving team return with another spine-tingling adventure, perfect for fans of Stranger Things and Crater Lake.

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[See also The Beast of Harwood Forest]

When an unidentified plane crashes in the fields next to Dunwick Farm in Crooked Oak, it quickly becomes clear that it was carrying some unusual cargo. As people in the town fall suddenly ill and animals start behaving strangely, friends Pete, Krish and Nancy try to find out what was in the glass boxes on board the plane. But as they uncover the facts, the trio realise that they are becoming entangled in a terrifying web …

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Shadowghast – An Eerie-on-Sea Mystery by Thomas Taylor

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The third book in this MG mystery series.

A creepy magician with a shadowy act. A legend that goes back to the dawn of time. Eerie-on-Sea just got stranger. And darker…

A mysterious stage magician has set up in the theatre at the end of the pier, with an act so hypnotic and strange that Herbie Lemon and his friend Violet Parma suspect dark forces are at work. Meanwhile, folk are disappearing from Eerie-on-Sea, and no one knows why. There is an Eerie legend that goes back to the dawn of time, about a creature made of darkness that devours the shadows of the living. But could the Shadowghast really have returned?

Hide And Secrets by Sophie McKenzie

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“McKenzie has written a thriller that moves at an electrifying pace. Although the reader is on Cat’s side as the story unfolds, the reader’s perception of who is a criminal and who is a victim will change. The bedrock of the narrative which does not fail to touch the reader is the relationship between Cat and her sister. Readers should be warned. Be prepared. There is a plot twist designed to keep them gasping at the end of every chapter, a twist that had this reviewer in its grip at every turn.”
BfK 5-star review

A lonely girl, a missing father and a trail of lies . . . From the million-copy bestselling author Girl Missing, comes a blockbuster teen thriller that will have you looking for answers round every corner.

Fourteen-year-old Cat is lonely – reeling from the loss of her father, she’s disconnected from friends and fighting with her mum. But when a new boy, Tyler, arrives for the summer, Cat finds herself opening up to the handsome stranger. A shocking revelation about her dad turns Cat’s world on its head. She and Tyler uncover a series of secrets that take them on a perilous journey. With fresh lies exposed and threats from a dangerous gang revealed, will Cat risk everything to keep herself and her family safe?

An explosive, edge-of-your-seat new drama from the original queen of teen thrillers,

Dark Peak by Marcus Sedgwick

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Times Children’s Book of the Week 17 Jul 2021

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“Dark Peak is essentially a rollicking mystery, but it also has a moral philosophical core, asking: why do we treat some people differently from others and can we do anything to change that?” The Times

During a long, hot summer, two children, Stephanie and Stephen, go missing while on a school trip to Lud’s Church, a deep chasm in the heart of the Peak District. Porter and his friend, Sam, are sent to fetch help. When they return they are surprised to find that although Stephanie has been found, no one is even looking for Stephen anymore. Why can no one remember what’s happened him? What happened in the dark of Lud’s Church? And why does Porter get the feeling that supernatural forces from deep in the past are at play? Marcus Sedgwick fuses mythology and mystery to create a compelling tale that is perfect for less-confident readers.

Kate On The Case by Hannah Peck

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 12 Jul 2021

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First in a witty two-colour self-authored chapter-book series about a bold young detective and a colourful cast of suspects, in a setting worthy of Agatha Christie.
Hannah Peck was a recent guest on ACHUKA’s weekend Q&A Meet An Illustrator...

Young reporter-in-training Kate and her mouse-accomplice Rupert are on board a train, to visit Kate’s mum in the Arctic. But as soon as the train departs, mysterious things start happening. A packet of ginger nuts goes missing . . . A collection of gymnastics trophies are stolen . . . And some ancient scrolls disappear . . . Fellow passenger Madame Maude seems the most likely culprit, until a surprising – and delicious – twist turns the whole investigation on its head.

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The House on the Edge by Alex Cotter

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cover illustration by Kathrin Honesta

ACHUKA Book of the Day 1 Jul 2021

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“This story has one of the strongest voices I have ever read. The character of Faith is gripping – readers feel every bit of her panic and her urgency to protect her home and family. This is a captivating story of twists and turns that kept me guessing until the very end. Young readers will be swept away in this brilliant combination of folklore and modern family issues.” Scope For Imagination
“What a debut novel from Alex Cotter! A great, pacy plot, cracking characters (Faith herself, as well as Mrs Hollowbread, the grumpy teacher!), and the story being told first-person through Faith adding a real sense of engagement and empathy with/for everything that was going on.”  Whatiread
“There are great, surprising twists and by the end everything reaches a thrilling climax with the answers slotting together like bricks. This is unusually different – in all the best ways.” Chris Soul

A tense thriller that’s impossible to put down – perfect for fans of Emma Carroll and Fleur Hitchcock. Where has Faith’s dad gone? Why has he left his family living in an old house perched on a crumbling cliff top? A crack has appeared in the cliff and Faith watches anxiously as it gets bigger and bigger each day… Her brother is obsessed with the sea ghosts he claims live in the basement, and when he disappears as well, Faith starts to believe in the ghosts too. Can she find her brother and bring her father back before everything she cares about falls into the pitiless sea below? A great mystery with real heart, from a captivating new voice in middle-grade fiction.

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an enthusiastic reader-response:

Twitch by M. G. Leonard

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ACHUKA Book of the Day 15 Jun 2021
Times Children’s Book of the Week 5 Jun 2021

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“…an absolute triumph. The perfect blend of mystery and adventure, a winning hero with an eye for ornithological facts and a heart as big as the countryside, plus a cracking whipsmart plot, I think this is M. G. Leonard’s best book yet.” Christopher Edge
“Right from the opening tense episode in which twelve-year-old Twitch successfully intervenes to prevent a group of lads from hurting a pigeon, this pacey adventure story immediately grabs your attention and ensures you’re already rooting for a boy who prefers the company of birds to most humans.” BfK 5 STAR review

From the internationally bestselling author of Beetle Boy and the Adventures on Trains series, comes the first book in The Twitchers, a brand new mystery adventure series celebrating friendship, bravery and the incredible world of birds, starring a birdwatching detective called Twitch!

Can a birdwatcher outwit an escaped convict?

Twitch has three pet chickens, four pigeons, swallows nesting in his bedroom and a passion for birdwatching. On the first day of the summer holidays, he arrives at his secret hide to find police everywhere: a convicted robber has broken out of prison and is hiding in Aves Wood. Can Twitch use his talents for birdwatching to hunt for the dangerous prisoner and find the missing loot?

Waiting For Murder by Fleur Hitchcock

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A new, pacy thriller from the author of the Clifftoppers adventures.

It’s a long, hot summer. As the water drains away from the reservoir, a car emerges. And there seems to be a body in it, a body that then disappears… Daniel and Florence start to investigate and uncover a long-ago robbery, missing gold and murder. When the drought breaks, everything is swept downstream and the truth is revealed… Another thriller from the brilliant author of Murder at Midwinter.

Check out this Reading Zone interview with the author.
Follow Fleur Hitchcock on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fleur.hitchcock/
Look for more information on this Nosy Crow page…

Agent Zaiba Investigates 3: The Haunted House by Annabelle Sami ill. Daniela Sosa

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The third book in a fun, fresh and exciting new detective series, for newly independent readers.
Previously:

Determined to be the world’s greatest detective, Zaiba is always on the lookout for a crime to solve!
When a new family moves to the village, Zaiba is intrigued to hear about the strange happenings in their home. Things go missing, objects are smashed and unfriendly messages are painted on the walls. There have always been rumours that the house is haunted, but is a ghost really causing all this trouble? Zaiba and her team are convinced that the culprit is very much alive – and won’t stop until they get what they want…

Follow the illustrator Daniela Sosa on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/daniela.illustrations/
Follow the author on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annabellesamibooks/

 

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